Falling Down the Rabbit Hole
by anabeav87
Summary: Set soon after Bonnie became the anchor. Katherine will not be taking over Elena's body and Damon will not be injected. I'm not sure if any other characters besides Bonnie and Damon and made up characters will be making an appearance. Still a work in progress. First ever fanfiction. Please be nice. Disclaimer: I do not own Vampire Diaries or any characters in it.
1. Chapter 1

Chapter 1

The idea of thanking Damon was not something I consciously thought about. We weren't friends…we weren't anything. We were just two people forced into a partnership because of circumstance and our love for a certain brunette beauty. Though I didn't necessarily hate him anymore I also didn't care about him and I believed the thought to be mutual until the day that Jeremy told him about my death. I stood behind Jeremy and watched as Damon's face crumbled and the awful truth was realized. I watched as he went through all five stages of grief. After that watching Damon handle my death became a fascination of mine. I was sure that it all stemmed from him wanting to shield Elena from pain but I noticed that he brought my grimoire to my funeral, that he came up with a plan to bring me back, that he destroyed a crate when he had to choose between Elena and I, that he snapped his brother's neck repeatedly, that he asked for Tessa's help, and that he begged Amara to live until I was on the other side. I saw it all and though it has now been over a month since I was brought back I still wonder what fueled Damon to do all of this. I haven't spoken of it and I have avoided Damon at all costs. But I can't anymore. I need help. A month with this pain has been unbearable so the idea of an eternity with it makes me want to jump off the nearest bridge. I've always been the strong one so to now admit defeat and especially to Damon will be hard but I know that if anyone can and will find a way to fix it he will. The tricky part is sneaking away to ask him without anyone finding out now that he and Elena are no longer together. I'm sure it will be seen as a traitorous act on my part if it comes out. So I wait until midterms, when I know that Caroline and Elena will be so swamped they won't notice if I disappear for a day or two and I make the journey to the Salvatore house to ask the devil for a favor. God have mercy on my soul.

*The devil can sometimes do a very gentlemanly thing. –Robert Louis Stevenson*


	2. Chapter 2

Thank you so much for the nice reviews! Here's chapter 2. I've already started working on the 3rd chapter. Hopefully you guys keep liking the story. I'll do my best to make the characters true to the ones on the show.

I'd been sitting in the car for fifteen minutes trying to talk myself into walking up to the door of the Salvatore mansion. I knew he knew I was there and was just waiting for me to grow the hell up and get out of the car…I knew he could hear my heartbeat. After a final big breath I opened the car door and placed my shaky feet on the ground and began the short walk to the front door. Damon already had the door open and merely nodded his head and moved back so I could enter the house.

"How goes it little witch?"

"I'm not a witch anymore Damon…you know that."

"Yeah…we should probably fix that."

I rolled my eyes as I walked ahead of him into the living room and whispered under my breath, "Yeah…so I can start saving _her _again."

I plopped down on the couch and smoothed out my navy blue maxi skirt as he went to the bar and poured himself some Jack. After a nice big gulp he turned to me and pinned me with his stare. I hated that stare. It always scared me, confused me, and excited me at the same time. He then lowered his head and stared into the amber liquid in his glass for what seemed like forever, like he was looking for the answers to the universe in it. He let out a huff like he finally decided on something, lifted his eyes to me again, and said, "Not everything I do is for Elena…like working my ass off to bring you back to the land of the living." The silence stretched between us for awhile…as he looked anywhere but me and as I tried desperately to pick up my jaw from the floor. "So why are you here, my oh so judgy one?"

I looked down at my folded hands in my lap to gather my courage and said under my breath "I need your help, Damon." What followed was complete silence. I waited for him to say something and after a full two minutes I looked up to find Damon staring intently at me. "Did you hear me Damon? I need your help." "I heard you…I just never thought you would say that to me and actually mean it." He turned around and set his glass on the bar and then turned back around with a sly smile and closed his eyes while saying, "Allow me to appreciate this moment for a minute, please." I shook my head, picked up my bag, and started walking to the front door. "I should have known I couldn't rely on you." By the time I made it to the front door he was already in front of me. "Bonnie, stop. I'll help you." "No, Damon you don't have to." "I want to. So…what's wrong?" "I can't take it anymore…" He looked at me with a quizzical life of his eyebrow. "Can't take what anymore? Baby Gilbert?" he said with a shit eating grin. I completely ignored that comment and looked him in the eye. "I'm in constant pain, Damon and I can't take it anymore. I feel their deaths…every single one and it's excruciating. I'm not strong enough for this. I need you to fix it, Damon. Please…" I finished my speech while my eyes filled with tears. After a full minute of him staring at me he finally responded with, "Go back to school. I'll find someone to fix this…I promise." With that he opened the door for me and I left without a backwards glance. Could I trust him to actually help? I wasn't Elena Gilbert after all and this had nothing to do with her…I was terrified that he like everyone else wouldn't fight for me…that I would once again be abandoned because I happened to not be a doppelganger. With that last thought I climbed in my car and headed back to Whitmore.

*Our prime purpose in this life is to help others. And if you can't help them, at least don't hurt them.* -Dalai Lama

I hadn't spoken to Damon in over two weeks…not since I left his house; neither had anyone else. After that day he packed a bag, got in his car, and disappeared. No one knew where he was and Stefan had even suggested that he had just skipped town and wouldn't be back. When he said it, it took everything in me not to react. Damon was all I had to get out of this hell and now he was gone. It was reaffirmed that all he cared about and all he would ever care about was Elena. I decided that being away from everyone was the best thing for me. I was depressed and I just couldn't be around anyone anymore. So I told everyone including Jeremy that I was spending the weekend packing up some of my dad's stuff and instead went there to hide out from the living for two days. I had been there all of three hours lying on the couch and watching a Will and Grace marathon when I passed out. I was exhausted. Having the spirits pass through me was hell and it took a lot out of me. I don't know how long I had been asleep…maybe 45 minutes before a loud, resounding knock came from the front door. I jumped awake and was instantly scared. I couldn't protect myself anymore and hadn't thought about that fact until now. I got up and slowly made my way to the front door and insistent knocks that seemed to never stop. Then I heard, "Come on Tituba, open the door!" I threw it open and stared in shock at a very wet Damon who had been standing in the storm waiting for me to let him in. He just huffed and brushed past me into the warm, inviting house. I was at a loss for words. "What are you doing here, Damon? Elena's not here…" He looked at me with a look that told me that he thought my comment was beyond stupid. "I know that. I'm here to see you." He plopped down on the couch and finished with, "You know to fix your problem." I felt my jaw slip open. "You're actually going to help me?" "I said I would. Why do you think I've been gone for two weeks?" He picked up my remote and started flipping channels before continuing, "It certainly wasn't a leisure trip!" I waited for him to finish but he said nothing and I started to get annoyed. I walked up and ripped the remote out of his hand and said in an agitated tone, "Well…how are you going to fix it?" He set back and sized me up. "The attitude really wasn't needed," he remarked. I started tapping my foot out of frustration. He raised an eyebrow and gestured to the stairs leading up to my bedroom before adding, "You should go up and pack and get a goodnight's sleep because we're leaving early in the morning."


	3. Chapter 3

I'm sorry for the delay. A lot of stuff is going on right now. So here is chapter 3. I made it a lot longer to go with the apology of it being late. I hope you guys enjoy it!

Disclaimer: I do not own Vampire Diaries or any characters from VD. If I did it would be a completely different show!

Chapter 3

I probably should have questioned Damon but instead by 9 in the morning I was dressed in a simple white dress, dark purple flats, and had overstuffed my overnight bag. The only perk of not having family was that I didn't have to leave a note for anyone about where I was going. I also didn't tell my friends or boyfriend. I truly didn't want to explain anything to them. I had barely gotten all the way down the stairs before there was pounding on my door. _Why couldn't he knock like a normal person! _

I threw open the door and pinned him with an annoyed look. "Do you think you could be any louder Damon?!" His mouth kicked up on the side in a cocky smile before responding, "I could try. Come on witchy let's go!" He reached inside and grabbed my bag before making his way to his car. I took a steady breath and tried not to think about the fact that I was leaving town with a psychopath and going to an unknown destination for an undetermined amount of time. I slowly closed and locked the door before making my way to the passenger side and climbing in without a second thought. Without looking at me Damon passed me a white mocha/cinnamon dolce combo (how he knew how I took my coffee I wasn't quite sure) and a small bag that contained a cheese danish before donning his aviators and backing out of my driveway.

We had been on the road for what seemed like forever but was probably actually only an hour. We hadn't said much to each other. I sat with my left leg curled underneath me while playing with the dial trying desperately to find something that would drown out the buzz of awkward silence. I settled on Ellie Goulding's 'I Know You Care.' I had always liked the song but as I actually started to pay attention to the words I became more and more uncomfortable. For some strange feeling all I could think was that this song was written for Damon and me. I looked at him from underneath my lashes to see if he was paying attention to the song and found his eyes already trained on me with a look of recognition. "What song is this?" He asked in a strained tone. "It's, um, I Know You Care by Ellie Goulding," I looked down at my dress and started picking at invisible strands, "Do you like it?" I was met with silence. I looked up and was awarded with that stare, the stare that could heat you up and cool you down at the same time. He slowly slid his sunglasses back over his eyes before whispering, "It seems familiar is all…"

I woke to Damon shaking my shoulder. I looked up at him with an annoyed expression. "What?!" He smirked and then replied, "Come on little witch. Time to eat!" I looked out of the window and was met with a sign for a local diner. I then checked my phone…we had been driving for at least nine hours. I was hungry, stiff, and tired. I had barely put my hand on the door handle before Damon was opening the door for me. I hadn't expected Damon to come with me but he followed close behind and sat down across from me in the booth before motioning for the waitress to wait on us. The waitress was a tall, gorgeous blond without an ounce of fat on her and stormy grey eyes that were hungry for Damon. The way she stared at him made me believe she could see right into the inner workings of his mind, however, Damon seemed oblivious to this and just motioned at me to order.

"Can I get the turkey, cheddar, sprout sandwich and pumpkin soup, please? With a coke."

Though she wrote down my order her eyes never left Damon's perfect bone structure. He finally lifted those cerulean orbs to look at her and I saw her jump back slightly like she had been burned. He gave her a dazzling smile that was created to make the recipient feel safe but I could see the animal behind that display.

"Can I just get a coffee?" She nodded her head and he added, "Thank you," before she turned on her heel like in a trance to put in our orders.

I chuckled under my breath and Damon lifted an eyebrow in question. "You really don't understand the hold you have over girls do you?"

In a completely serious tone he replied, "Oh I do…I just don't care. Plus it doesn't work on every girl." He tilted his head to the side like a lizard studying their prey. "It never worked on you."

"That's because I know you are just a demon with skin." I answered sweetly before I started drinking the coke that the waitress had finally brought. I waited for a smart ass comment but all Damon said was, "I think we're just going to get a hotel room here tonight and then continue on our way in the morning."

I looked at him dumbfounded. "Why?"

"Because I'm tired and don't feel like driving anymore and you aren't allowed to touch my car." He smiled sweetly before adding, "Don't worry Bon Bon I won't touch…not unless you beg."

I made a disgusted expression. "Where are we going anyway, Damon?"

"Massachusetts"

"What? Why?"

All he responded with before he began to drink his coffee and ignore me was, "Salem."

I wandered around the lobby as Damon got us a hotel room. It was a really nice hotel and I didn't really understand why he would book such a nice place for one night but the thought of a nice, warm bed squashed my suspicions. In no time he was leading me to the elevator and we were riding up to the 9th floor. We were both silent but it was a comfortable silence that I thoroughly enjoyed. He opened the door for me and I immediately walked in before stopping short in shock.

"Damon…..why is there only one bed?" I asked as I turned to him slowly.

He walked past me to deposit the bags on the bed. "It was all they had. I'm going to take a shower. Get comfortable and order whatever you want." With that he grabbed his bag and walked into the bathroom. I stared at the closed door with my mouth hanging open before closing the bedroom door softly and sitting on the bed still in shock.

He had been in the shower probably a good 15 minutes while I flipped through all 200 channels searching for something, anything to distract me from the situation I was in. I had already received two calls from Jeremy and a text from Caroline…I ignored both of them. It just seemed easier. I was really into some low budget horror movie by the time the bathroom door opened. I looked up out of habit and froze…there were droplets of water running down his forehead and he was naked except for the low hanging towel on his narrow hips. He was gorgeous and it almost pained me to admit it.

"Stare any harder judgy and you'll burn my towel right off." I dropped my eyes immediately. He chuckled at my response and motioned towards the bathroom. "You can go ahead and take a shower if you want. I'm done." I quickly gathered my things and rushed into the room without making eye contact with him. Once in the bathroom I relaxed a bit and met my own green eyes in the mirror. As I looked at myself I started contemplating what I was doing. I was entrusting Damon with so much…the thought was almost laughable considering our past relationship but for some reason I now trusted him slightly more than anyone else in our group. He was strong, capable, and insanely protective and I now knew that I meant something to him outside of his relationship with Elena. My fear of him was gone and strangely enough I now was curious about who he was underneath the cold-like, predator exterior. I shook off the thoughts plaguing my mind and hopped in the shower while simultaneously wondering how this sleeping arrangement would work.

I slipped on a pair of black leggings, polka dot socks, and an oversized green t-shirt and walked out of the bathroom with a pseudo-like confidence. The room was in total blackness save a low light on the nightstand beside what I presumed was my side of the bed. Damon was already in bed and appeared to be sleeping. I didn't even question myself…I just climbed into bed beside him and turned off the light. A few seconds later I felt the bed shift as Damon turned towards me. He stayed silent but I could feel him intently watching my face. I finally gave up the struggle and turned on my side, facing him completely.

"Damon?"

"Yes little bird?"

I smiled at the nickname though I didn't ask what this one meant.

"Can I ask you something?"

I felt as well as heard his sigh. "Yes…"

"Why did you fight so hard to bring me back to life?"


End file.
